Graflex.org

[1banjo]

hay all
I just got a BAD buy on a Century got most of my $$ back
It was listed as

Graflex Century Graphic Camera , f4.5 103mm Graflex Graftar Lens . I have no knowledge of these cameras and it is in found condition , shows some corrosion on the Kalart synchronized Range Finder. Camera looks to be in fair condition , the flex part is not torn or damaged.

NOW the only thing fair condition was the Bellows
the Graflok hoks clips for holding the ground glass in place 1 was gone
the other has one 1 rivet
the rangerfinder is trash
BUT the HATED 103mm lens Shutter did not work but looked good in side
SO I put it in my Ultrasonic with 50/50 water to Ammonia ran it for about 10 min. then a water wash then a Alcohol wash & dryed it good it work almost like New

SO now you can say all the shit about the Graftar that you wont
BUT the shutter is ease to clean up!!
I have 4 or 5 of this shutter & this is the first one I have had to cleaned up

[LAWRENCE]

CAN ANYONE TELL ME IF I JUST SWITCH OUT MY 135 FOR A BETTER 135

IN MY CROWN, WHAT WOULD BE THE SIMPLE PROCEDURE TO DO THIS.

I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THE PROCESS IN UPGRADING A

LENS BUT CAN NOT GRASP THE CONCEPT, MAYBE I SHOULD JUST STAY

WITH THE FACTORY LENS, I THOUGHT YOU POP ONE OUT AND POP ONE

IN.

I WANTED TO REPLACE MY 103 IN MY 2X3 WITH THE 135 FROM THE POP

OUT FROM THE ABOVE 4X5 CROWN, CAN THIS BE DONE AND HOW ?

WILL I HAVE TO REPLACE BOARDS, CAMS, ECT AND MY SANITY ?

THANKS

SHOULD I BE LOOKING FOR BOARDS AND CAMS?
_________________
thanks for your help

[1banjo]

You need a 2x3 lens board as the 4x5
Has a larger lens board

[Henry]

The 135 takes a larger hole than the 103, so you can't reuse that board without redrilling it. You'll have to obtain another board, one that fits the 2x3, as banjo says, and have it drilled to the correct diameter for the 135. I've been down this road several times, as I have four Optar lenses in addition to the Graftar 103 that came on my Century, and they all take different sizes of hole.

[LAWRENCE]

CAN I JUST SWAP A BETTER 135MM LENS FOR THE OLD ORIGINAL 135MM

WITHOUT HAVING TO CHANGE CAMS ECT, JUST TAKE OLD 135MM OFF

AND PUT NEW 135MM ON, SAME OLD BOARD BACK ON AND SHOOT, YES OR

NO?

THANKS
_________________
thanks for your help

[45PSS]

Its not that simple.
Lens are rarely their marked focal length. They can be ±.1mm to ±3mm of the marked focal length.
Shutter sizes were not standardized until the late 1960's or early 1970's. Each manufacturer had their own sizes.
If you are lucky then you can do a swap without adjusting anything and have the rangefinder match.
The greater the actual focal length difference the greater the infinity position error and the greater the rangefinder error at closer focused distances.

Put the camera on a tripod.
Point at an infinity target at least 5000 feet/1524 meter away.
Using a loupe focus the lens wide open on the ground glass.
Check that the front standard is square to the rails and adjust as needed.
Recheck focus.
Set infinity stops against the front standard and secure.
Check the rangefinder against the ground glass for accuracy.
_________________
The best camera ever made is the one that YOU enjoy using and produces the image quality that satifies YOU.

[LAWRENCE]

THANKS 45PSS BUT I AM UNABLE TO UNDERSTAND ALL THE TECH

TALK ABOUT RAILS AND SUCH, I WILL GET MY CAMERA NEXT WEEK

AND I WILL PLAY WITH IT TO SEE IF I CAN WORK THINGS OUT

THANKS.

I WILL SET MY CAMERA UP WITH YOUR INSTRUCTIONS THANKS
_________________
thanks for your help

[45PSS]

This GuideBook: http://www.cameraeccentric.com/html/info/graflex_4.html
should help you differentiate the gismos from the thingamajigs from the doohickeys and the gadgets. The thingamabobs may still be elusive.
_________________
The best camera ever made is the one that YOU enjoy using and produces the image quality that satifies YOU.